Sideshow & Syrana

So recently it was revealed that the upcoming Star Wars: The Old Republic (SWTOR) MMO by Bioware will have the option of utilizing NPC companions.  (Check out this video interview for the full scoop.)

Apparently this is the apocalypse and the demise of the genre as well as false advertising as an MMO.  Keen is not the only one that seems to take issue with this.

The main point I pulled from Keen’s post was that the inclusion of NPC companions meant that Bioware is developing a single player game with multiplayer options rather than a massively multiplayer online game.

In the other posts I read regarding this (and the dislike for it) I couldn’t help but notice a point of view that was being missed…

Why can’t it be viewed as a multiplayer game with single player options?

That thought was then followed up with these:

Why does an MMO have to mean forced grouping at all times?

What MMO has forced grouping at all times nowadays?

Storytellers

But mainly what I saw as missed that MY ears latched onto during that interview was the part the NPC companions play in the story.

Dragon Age, anyone?

Story equals immersion.  Your companions will react to your choices…

There are going to be certain characters that will be integral to the Star Wars story, but won’t suffice as a simple quest giver.  And some… you just can’t expect to create.  So genre destroyer be damned, it sounds to me to be more of a vehicle of driving the story.  Plus, you’re more likely to listen to what they have to say than read quest test, amirite?

Anywho, in this post I am going to move forward with addressing the “single player games are trying to overthrow and destroy MMOs” argument. (continue reading…)

Blood doesn't scare me.

After hearing several people comment and rave about how great Dragon Age: Origins has been, Sideshow and I had to check it out.  We seem to be one of the few blogs that weren’t offered a review copy, but that’s ok.  It was totally worth the cost for us.  Sideshow and I watched some videos and such, and it just looked awesome.  We decided to buy the PC version through Steam.  That seems to have been an excellent choice for us.  (For those interested, they have a demo for character creation.)

I started playing it about a week and a half ago.  And… well, I haven’t been able to peel myself away from it long enough to play any other games.  This is making it up into my top faves, for sure.

Let’s put it this way: I’ve played my main character in Dragon Age for 36 hours and have only completed 27% of the game.

(continue reading…)